HYDERABAD: Blive, a leading EV brand and one-stop solution for related services has partnered with delivery service provider Zomato to deploy 10,000 EVs in Indian cities over the next two years, beginning with Hyderabad. CE chats with Sandeep Mukherjee, COO and co-founder of Blive to know about the inspiration behind setting up an EV store, barriers to mass production and sale of EVs in the country and what can be done to eliminate them
What inspired you to make this company?
Blive, as the name suggests, is about being alive. We can be ‘alive’ only by creating a planet that is sustainable and green. I and the co-founder Samarth (Kholkar) come from a corporate background. We always had the vision to create something which can drive impact. As a startup, we believe that electric vehicles are the need of the hour.
What were the challenges?
There are three key barriers to the mass adoption of EVs. One is awareness. When we started in 2018, people hardly knew the specifics of EVs. There were a lot of myths and notions. The first challenge was to create awareness and provide education about EVs and the second was to make them accessible. Be it accessibility to multiple brands under one roof or accessibility to a good charging network or good service support. The third thing which we are working on now is affordability. How do we make EVs easy to own and affordable for the mass market? These were three broad three ‘As’ as we call them.
How did you overcome these challenges?
First, to create awareness, we started with a unique concept called ‘EV Tourism’ in Goa. We gave people the experience of electric vehicles while showing the unique aspects of Goa. With that, we were recognised and we were in 16 cities at one point. Then we created India’s first multi-brand EV store on a digital platform. It was like the Flipkart of EVs. We started shipping e-cycles directly to homes during Covid as people needed personal mobility. Then people wanted electric scooters also. That is where we created our physical stores. Our first physical store came up in Hyderabad. That was our foray into making Blive, a multi-brand phy-gital platform, where you have digital as well as physical touchpads. We created a platform where you can come and choose from multiple brands. There will be an EV expert who will be guiding you. There will be easy finance available, easy insurance, roadside assistance and even a charging point and a service centre. It is like an EV hub. Now we have close to about 30 EV stores across India.
How do you make EVs more affordable?
We have tied up with multiple EV lenders such as NBFCs and FinTech companies which are ready to lend to people, even those who don’t have a good CIBIL score. For example, a Swiggy delivery guy, who does not have a credit history, but does that mean he does not deserve to ride an EV? Another very interesting thing we are launching very soon is a renting platform. If you don’t want to buy an EV worth `1 lakh, you can take it on a subscription for just `5,000 a month. That breaks down the cost of ownership and makes it affordable. That we will be launching this month in Bangalore and Hyderabad. Then there are ICEs, Internal Combustion Engine brands doing their bit. But it is really interesting to see how government and financial institutions play a role in that and how OEMs come up with unique models of adoption. The cost of the battery is 30% of the cost of the vehicle. If you can have the battery on subscription, it can really bring down the cost of the EV by almost 30 to 40%.
What role do governments play to break down these infrastructural barriers?
A majority of personal users of EVs are charging at home. The government should drive more installation of charging points and make them more accessible to people. Secondly, subsidies, the government had a very strong FAME 2 subsidy, which essentially made the total cost of ownership favourable for EVs. The government has now rolled back a large portion of the FAME 2 subsidies. We need one coordinated effort where governments work together to make EVs more affordable. Second is also providing slacks to manufacturers and sellers. Can batteries be made tax-free? Can EVs be made tax-free? These things can really give a big jump. When you talk about ICE versus EVs, right now, EVs are under 5% of market share. Can that reach 15-20%? Government has a vision: 30 at 30. By 2030, 30% of all vehicles will be EVs. But that’s a very big dream.
How do you ensure that there are no health hazards caused by EVs?
The government has come up, just a few months back, with a very clear directive that for you to be able to sell your EVs in the country, your battery has to be of a certain specification. This is called the AIS norms. This AIS norm has actually enhanced the quality of the vehicle and battery norms ensure that it doesn’t catch fire.
What is your partnership with Zomato?
We invite people who want to join the EV revolution to come and partner with us. We cater both to B2C as well as B2B customers. Anybody who has got mobility requirements for commercial use, like a delivery company, a courier company, a restaurant, a medical store or a distributor of FNCD products. We provide them with a customised product, finance, charging and roadside assistance and even technology to track your vehicles. This is the kind of deal that we’ve done with Zomato. Over the next two years, we will be deploying over 10,000 EVs through our partners. We encourage more businesses to contact us and we will help them.